Storm Warning
by Sgt.Pepperony
Summary: The Rogers are finally happy and stable until an unexpected car accident threatens to throw a spanner into their marriage. [Part 3 of Storms and Rubble] *Complete*
1. Part One: Chapter One

**Title:** Storm Warning **  
Author:** Sgt. Pepperony  
 **Fandom:** Avengers (MCU)  
 **Main Pairing:** Steve/Wanda  
 **Secondary Pairings:** Pietro/Daisy, Tony/Pepper, Sam/Darcy  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Disclaimer:** I do not own the Avengers, characters. Property of Marvel and Disney.

 **Hi, so we're back with a sequel to Rubble that picks up two years after the epilogue. Rubble covered the beginning of Steve and Wanda's relationship and how they deal with the fallout of Civil War. Storm Warning, as stated in the summary, leads them to their biggest challenge yet to their marriage.**

* * *

 _Part One: The Calm Before the Storm_

* * *

 _You're my river running high,  
Run deep, run wild._

Chapter One

People often asked Wanda Rogers how she managed to be a mother to four young children, manage a charity foundation and be an Avenger. The first thing she would answer that the first battle was the school run. With two in kindergarten, one in second grade and one in pre-school, it could be a challenge at times

First was trying to get all four out of bed, teeth brushed and dressed. Joey, the second-grader, was easier since he was able to get dressed unsupervised, while kindergarten twins Lilly and Rose often clashed with Wanda over what they wanted to wear, Rose especially since she refused to wear required trousers on the principle that they were for boys. Lilly, who preferred jeans to dresses, would argue back that more things could be done in trousers than a skirt. James often would fight Steve as he often preferred to be naked.

Breakfast was the second battle as the girls would rather play than eat. Even Dutch pancakes were not enough to keep their attention. Finally, it was time to leave and Wanda at least had the common sense to pack the lunches the night before given that all four ate different types.

"Okay, lunches kids. Joey: tuna and sweetcorn. Lilly: chicken and pesto. Rose: cheese and pickle. James: PB and J," Wanda proclaimed as she handed the lunch boxes to the respective child.

As each child received their lunch box, they all said their thanks and Steve started to get them into the car. Wanda kissed them all on the head and then Steve on the lips. Finally, even if it was only going to be for a few hours, the house was at peace.

After clearing away breakfast and the toys the twins had left on the floor, Wanda began to read the large stack of letters that had been delivered to her post-office box. Since establishing The Maximoff Foundation, she was often inundated with letters requesting for donations. During the first year, she did not know where to direct the money until Pepper sat her down to narrow the aims of the trust with particular emphasis on physical rehabilitation in the US and helping children in war-torn countries. It was an idea she had in the year after Lilly and Rose were born, and it was something she and her brother worked together on to help those who were not as fortunate as they were.

At 13:00, it was time to pick James up from pre-school. Wanda did not mind this one-on-one time with her youngest as they often went to the library. He loved being read to and Wanda loved reading to him. By 14:30, it was time to get the older kids. Thankfully, today it looked as though Lilly and Joey had avoided getting into trouble, so they could go straight home, and start dinner and homework. Tonight was spaghetti bolognese.

Steve arrived home around 17:30 and dinner was served with the usual discussion about everyone's day. Steve was usually staked with paperwork, Joey got an A on his spelling test, Rose got a gold star for her painting while Lilly got a gold star for her reading. For once, it seemed like a good day.

Bath, books, and bed were next in line. Steve and Wanda often tag-teamed it with Steve doing the bathing while Wanda got the kids dressed in pyjamas and into bed with a story. James went down first at 19:00. Lilly and Rose were in bed for 19:30 and finally Joey was asleep by 20:00.

"Peace at last," Steve whispered as he climbed down the stairs to collapse on the sofa next to Wanda. "I love them but they are hard work sometimes."

"I think it's nice they have lively personalities," Wanda replied snuggling up to him. "God knows where they get it from though."

Steve chuckled and kissed Wanda on the head. "Me neither. Maybe if we have another, they might be placid like us."

"Who says anything about another. We're overwhelmed enough as it is."

"True. So what do you want to do tonight?"

"We could just watch a film."

"Like we did last night and the night before."

"Too tired for anything else."

"Okay," he whispered kissing her head again before going to the cabinet to select a DVD.

It may have been a boring life compared to what they had previously experienced but given how much it had taken for them to get to this point, it was more than a happy boring life.


	2. Pt 1: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

In the midst of the regular routine of getting the kids to school and picking them up, there were the occasional breaks where Wanda was able to socialise. Usually, they were during the day and it was only coffee with Pepper and her sister-in-law Daisy. It was often a challenge not to bring up the kids.

"I swear Tess was meant to be an owl because she has not been sleeping at night these last few weeks," Daisy commented sipping her Americano. "I love her but the girl needs to stop getting me up at four in the morning."

"Haven't you put her in a toddler bed yet?" Pepper asked.

"Actually, it started when we transitioned her to a bed."

"Same thing happened when we transitioned Joey to a bed," Wanda added. "The first night he whined and whined, then eventually it clicked that he should be in bed and asleep. Then the regression came and he started waking up at two in the morning. And he was super-happy. Only stopped after I fell pregnant with the twins. Something in his head must have clicked that mommy needed to sleep."

"The thing is Pietro is a soft-touch with her. He lets her climb into bed with us. How can we have a love life when there is a two-year-old in the middle of the bed?"

"I think Tony is a soft-touch because he does not like to be like his father. Honestly, Jack is not a bad child but he does push some limits," Pepper added.

"You two want to handle my four all in one morning?" Wanda asked.

"I'm good thanks."

"When was the last time we had a conversation that did not revolve around the kids?" Daisy asked.

"I don't know," Wanda replied. "When you have four of them, your life revolves around them. If it is not getting them to school, it's making sure they get to their activities, do their homework, read to them and then get them to bed. God knows how I am still awake by the time Joey falls asleep."

"Me neither. Anyway, Thanksgiving is at ours this year. Any suggestions?" Daisy asked.

"You really sure that you want to cook the whole hog?" Pepper asked.

"I'm not cooking a hog. I'm cooking a turkey."

"She meant the yams, turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mash potatoes and gravy, and the pies," Wanda explained.

"It's not that much."

-o-

It was a lot. Daisy had underestimated the time it would take to cook a large turkey and the sides. She did at least cook the desserts the night before. Instead of cooking the turkey first thing in the morning, she left it until an hour before the guests were due to arrive. By five in the afternoon, the guests that consisted of Steve, Wanda and the kids, Sam and Darcy, and finally Jemma and Fitz, were ravenous. Darcy had even started digging into the pecan pie.

"Hey, that's for dessert!" Daisy complained.

"I'm sorry but that turkey is at least three hours away," Darcy replied with her mouth full.

"No one told me it was going to take all day."

"Did your mother not teach you how to cook?"

"No, because I did not have a mother or a kitchen in my van."

"Daisy, the kids are getting restless. Can we just order a pizza?" Pietro asked.

Daisy sighed and looked at the bird in the oven that was slowly roasting away. Eventually, she gave up and replied, "Fine. Get me a ham and pineapple."

Forty-five minutes later, the stack of pizzas arrived for everyone and everyone immediately rammed the slices into their mouth.

"God I am starving," Sam moaned as he indulged on the taste of the cheese and pepperoni.

"I'm sorry guys," Daisy said.

"Hey don't beat yourself up. It was a valiant effort to try to cook all that," Jemma reassured.

"Though you really should have checked how long to cook a turkey," Fitz added.

"You still did better than Wanda the first time she cooked Thanksgiving dinner," Steve commented.

"Hey, I was six months pregnant at the time. You try bending down and reaching things when you have something the size of a bowling ball in your stomach," Wanda countered. "Besides this was still an improvement on last year when everyone was late."

"Well, not really Wanda," Pietro began. "This year everyone was on time but the food was late."

"I'm not going to live this down am I?" Daisy asked.

"Well, it will make for a funny Thanksgiving story," Steve replied. "I still think the most embarrassing Thanksgiving goes to Tony for his interactions with Pepper's mother."

"Oh yeah," Sam laughed.

-o-

"Why do we do this every year?" Sam asked as he helped Steve and Natasha carry in the many bags they had acquired during the Black Friday sales. They had been awake since one that morning to get to Macy's before it opened.

"Because my godchildren mean the world to me," Natasha replied putting her load of bags down.

"All the good Christmas presents would be gone. Besides, blame Wanda. James managed to push her over by kissing her on the face so he can get this dancing Elmo doll," Steve added.

"I wonder if that woman has managed to get that paint out her hair," Sam said glaring at Natasha.

"In my defence, the store should not leave a ladder with a bucket of paint unattended."

Anyway, let's get these out the way before the kids wake up," Steve interrupted as he moved up the stairs to the master bedroom. Wanda was still sleeping so they had to quietly put the gifts away in the walk-in wardrobe.

"Right, now I am going to fall asleep until tomorrow morning," Natasha said as she walked out the bedroom.

"Me too. See you later man," Sam added following Natasha.

Steve yawned and collapsed on the bed. Wanda shuffled and groaned.

"What time is it?" she mumbled.

"Six in the morning," Steve replied as he wrapped his arm around her. "Just got back from the store."

"Who did Natasha hurt this year?"

"A woman got paint in her hair."

Wanda laughed softly before rolling over. "You sleepy?"

"Depends."

Wanda pressed a kiss to his forehead and then his nose and finally his lips. Steve smiled and rolled onto his back with Wanda on top of him. She deepened the kiss, only for Steve to stop responding and start snoring.

Wanda sat up and shook her head. She climbed off her husband, pulled the duvet up, kissed Steve on the nose and turned around to fall back asleep. After a moment, Steve rolled over so his chest was against her back and wrapped his arm around her again. Wanda smiled and relaxed into his hug.

It was only a blissful moment later when Lilly woke Wanda up asking for breakfast.

"Is Daddy sick?" Lilly asked.

"No sweetheart, he's just tired."

"Why?"

"He had to work late."

"Why?"

"To ensure Santa gets your Christmas list. Now come on, what do you fancy: French toast or omelette?"

"Both."

"Can't have both Lil. It's one or the other."

"Both."


	3. Pt 1: Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Wanda couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu as she walked through the hospital corridors. They looked so similar to the corridors when she was five and had to have an appendectomy. Only this time it was not her that was having something removed. Rose's tonsils and adenoids had become so swollen that it was making her gag on her food. Given she already had issues with her breathing, they needed to be removed as soon as possible.

It was just a routine surgery. Yet so was Wanda's appendectomy and that had been botched to the point where she was in a coma for three weeks. Granted, it had developed into peritonitis by the time they got her on the operating table, but the trauma still lingered. So it was no wonder she was incredibly nervous about her daughter being cut open, even though the part of her brain that housed common sense was telling her that the surgery was necessary.

Bless her little though, Rose seemed chipper as she was led to a children's ward. The nurses were very gentle with her and helped her get settled in bed. She was not a fan of the itchy hospital gown. That aside, she was in a comfortable bed and had her Hulk plushy.

After a couple hours, they were ready to take Rose down to the operating room. Wanda felt her breath hitch a bit as the paediatric and general surgeons pulled the bed bars up. Rose did not look the least bit freaked out and seemed more confused at her mother's nervousness.

Before they could wheel Rose's bed away, Wanda bent over the bed and kissed Rose on the cheek. "Mommy loves you okay."

"Okay Mommy."

Wanda gave another kiss and moved away as the doctors moved the bed. Steve wrapped his arm around Wanda and kissed her head.

"She's going to be fine Doll," he whispered.

Wanda clutched the hand that was on her shoulder and squeezed it. "I know, but she's our baby."

"It's just a simple surgery."

"But her asthma-"

"They know what they are doing; they've looked at all the risks. Now come on, let's go wait."

-o-

It felt like the longest hour before they finally got news that Rose was in recovery and that the surgery went well. As a precaution, they were going to keep her overnight but as far as they were concerned, she was going to be okay.

"See. She's perfectly fine," Steve said as they were led to the recovery ward. Wanda actually felt relieved that it had gone well but was more anxious to see her daughter.

They finally found Rose's bed. While she looked fine, she still was very drowsy. Wanda leaned over the railings and kissed Rose on the cheek. "Hey my brave girl. How do you feel?"

"Throat sore," Rose gasped.

"Don't get her to try to talk so much," the nurse warned. "Her throat is still healing."

"Hey Rosie," Steve whispered as he played with Rose's curls. "You want a kiss?" Rose nodded and Steve pressed a kiss to Rose's forehead. "We'll take you home tomorrow when you are feeling better okay?"

"Want Lilly," Rose said weakly.

"Tomorrow sweetheart," Wanda replied. "I promise."

-o-

By the next morning, Rose had recovered from the effects of the aesthetic enough that she seemed sprightlier, but the doctors wanted to check there was no problems with her breathing. It was one of the things Steve secretly worried about when it came to his girls. Both Lilly and Rose had inherited the breathing difficulties he suffered before his enhancement. Even going out in the cold seemed to have some effect on their chest.

Steve could feel his own heart racing as the paediatrician pressed her stethoscope against Rose's chest. Eventually, she nodded. "I think you are good to go home."

Steve breathed a sigh of relief and kissed Rose on the head. Wanda signed the discharge papers and Steve picked Rose up ready to go home. While they were given some home remedies such as ice pops and bland food, they were allowed to carry on as normal.

They later arrived home at around four in the afternoon where Joey and Lilly started to fuss over their sister. James had barely noticed that his older sister had disappeared. Rose was still struggling to talk so could barely communicate with her siblings but it was not long before she was playing dolls with Lilly.

"Talk about a bump in the road," Wanda whispered as she sipped her tea.

"Well, it hardly took out the vehicle," Steve replied.

"True. We don't half make mountains out of molehills."

"Well, she's our baby. You yesterday is me every single time they go outside. Call it side effects of the job but I do worry about them just getting hurt. Even a knee graze worries me."

"The thing is Steve, they are the most perfect things in our life. I remember the second I found out I was pregnant with Joey. I was terrified for many reasons, but mostly that he would be taken away by people who would hurt him. That is parenthood I think. Swearing to protect them from even the little things."

"I'm not going to lie, I was scared for each of the births. Less so James, but Joey's birth was hardly a good advertisement."

"You try going through it. God help me if Joey was actually full term given the size of his head at only thirty-five weeks."

"He did have a big head. Well, let's just get through Christmas."

"Oh God."


	4. Pt 1: Chapter Four

Two days before Christmas marked James's third birthday and Wanda had a hard time deciding whether the much-desired dancing Elmo would be his birthday or Christmas present. Eventually, she settled on his birthday, since they had bought enough small toys for him to keep him satisfied through the Holiday season.

Being excitable, James woke up early on the 23rd December to find his presents. He snuck into Steve and Wanda's closet and found the wrapped box. There was a Thomas the Tank Engine tag on, which was how he knew it was for him. He ripped the paper off, smiled and squealed as he saw the red furry doll come into his line of sight. The squeal woke Wanda and Steve up and Steve immediately went to the closet, retrieving James and Elmo.

"James," Wanda whined. "Could you not have waited?" James shook his head, still smiling away. "That was very naughty you know."

"But it my birthday."

"I know full well what day it is."

"Wanda, maybe we should let him off this once. He just got over excited," Steve said. He put James down on the bed and got Elmo out the box. He put batteries in the back and pressed the button that made Elmo dance to Old McDonald. James joined in the dancing and Wanda could not help but smile as she watched.

However, by Boxing Day, everyone was getting annoyed with the song being played on repeat. James loved the toy and carried it around everywhere, and when Elmo stopped dancing, he would press the button and the music would play again.

"Mom, can you get him to stop?" Joey complained.

"I tried but he went into a full-on meltdown," Wanda replied. "Give him a few days and he'll grow tired of it. Remember Lilly and her obsession with Baby Beluga"

"She played that for a month straight."

"True, but Lilly has a longer attention span than James. Somehow. Okay, bad example but James used to be obsessed with that monkey advert."

"That took two weeks."

"Better than a month."

-o-

"Who thought it would be a wise idea to host a New Year's Eve party?" Wanda asked as she grabbed the three bottles of champagne from the fridge.

"Well, you thought up the rota for the Holidays so it was fair for everyone. At least next year we'll be at Clint's Farm," Steve replied. "Now, I know we agreed to let Joey stay up past midnight but what about the girls?"

"Ten, so don't give them too much sugar."

"Well, I best get James to bed."

He went to James and Joey's bedroom where James was on the floor watching Elmo dance for what had to be the two-hundredth time that day while Joey was playing his music at full blast through his headphones to drown out the sound coming from the toy. However, just as Elmo got to 'And on that farm he had a cow' the toy just stopped. James pressed the button and the again when the music did not start playing again.

"Daddy. Elmo broken," he whined.

"I think Elmo's batteries have run out," Steve responded as he took Joey's headphones off.

"Hey," Joey complained. "Why is the room silent? And why is Elmo not dancing."

"He broken," James sulked with his arms crossed.

"He's not broken. He just needs new batteries," Steve explained as he picked the toy up and put it on the shelf out of James's reach. "I will put new ones in Elmo in the morning. Right now, James, it's bedtime."

"But Elmo."

"Elmo's gone to sleep now. You should too. Come on, I'll read you a story. Joey, go help your mom downstairs please." Joey shrugged and did as his father said. Steve turned to James and picked the three-year-old off the floor. Once James was tucked into bed. Steve turned to the book nook and pulled out The Tiger that Came for Tea. The pout on James's face had not disappeared. "Listen, I know you want Elmo but need and want are two different things. James, you _need_ sleep."

"But Joey gets to stay up."

"Joey is older than you. Your age determines the amount of sleep you need. Being so little, you need a lot I'm afraid. Now, we reading this book or what?"

-o-

Thankfully, the girls were tired out by nine and went to bed almost of their own accord. While Wanda thought it would be a nice treat for them, the fact that Lilly and Rose were so willing to just go to bed was a miracle in of itself. Yet, by ten, she was questioning whether letting Joey stay up was a good idea as he was also falling asleep. As much as he tried to fight his exhaustion, Joey ended up reluctantly going to bed. They were all so tired that none of them needed a story to lull them off.

"If only it were that easy every night," Wanda commented. "Mind you, if we let them do it every night, we would have no time to ourselves."

"We clearly are stricter than most parents," Steve replied.

"I don't think we're strict. I think we just know not to be pushed over. Besides, trying to get alone time in this house is not exactly easy."

"I take it that you don't want another then."

"Steve, when I found out I was pregnant with James, I was in shock. I thought we would just have the three. And I love him and would never have got rid of him, but you have to draw the line somewhere. They're all growing up way too fast for my liking but things are different to when we had only Joey. We did not have S.H.I.E.L.D, Joey did not take up so much of our time, and we had Pietro and Bucky living with us. All that, and we're not as young as we were when Joey was born. Do you really want another?"

"I don't know. I guess I just missed when they were all little babies."

"I do too, but if we have a child every time we feel like this, we would be going in the same circle over and over again."

Steve smiled and pulled her into a hug. "You're right. So New Year's resolution: we just keep on what we're doing."

"Agreed."

Just as Steve pressed a kiss to Wanda's crown, the countdown to midnight began, "Five, four, three, two, one! Happy New Year!" followed swiftly by, "Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should old acquaintance be forgot, and old lang syne?"

To keep with tradition, Steve pressed a kiss to Wanda's lips. Maybe it could not be called a New Year's resolution since it did not involve change, but it was one that had kept them going for nearly ten years, and it was not going to stop for anything.

* * *

 _End of Part One_

* * *

 **I am sorry this took a while. Between a cold, starting my masters and a new job, I barely had time to do this in one sitting. I doubt I can make regular updates but I will do the best I can. The chapters will get longer as we move into part two so keep an eye on your e-mails.**


	5. Part Two: Chapter One

_Part Two: The Day the Storm Hit_

* * *

 _Ouch, I have lost myself again.  
Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found.  
Yeah, I think that I might break.  
Lost myself again and I feel unsafe_

Chapter One

She had told him not to be late.

Yet as Wanda looked at the clock approaching six, she was getting annoyed with Steve. He was never late coming home, yet tonight of all nights, he was running late and had not bothered to call.

That should have been the first sign something was not right.

If it was any other night, it would not have bothered Wanda so much. Yet, it had to be the night they were hosting a dinner party. Wanda had been stressing about this dinner since the second the date was set. She had changed the starter at least three times. She had questioned the choice of main about four times. That was until Pietro told her that the point of a dinner party was not the food but the company.

Said company started to arrive around seven. Steve was two hours late by this point, and Wanda was close to just serving the food without him.

"Steve, where are you? This is the fifth time I've called. Everyone is here but you. Just call me," Wanda said into the phone that had, yet again, gone to voicemail. Eventually, she had to start serving the food, whether Steve was there or not.

"He may have been called on some emergency mission," Pepper said while Wanda stirred the soup.

"He would have called to tell me. Besides, they would not send him without Natasha and as far as I know, she and Bucky are on their way back from France," Wanda replied.

"Did you have a fight this morning?"

"No," Wanda lied. It was not a total lie, but Wanda had been pretty short with Steve that morning. She hadn't slept well and when she was sleep deprived, she had a tendency to become snappy. Steve did not seem to mind but maybe he was not in the mood himself to deal with Wanda's temper. "Should I be worried?"

"You've called five times and he has not answered. That does not sound like Steve."

"Maybe I should call Gita and ask if he is still in the office."

"Good idea."

Wanda took her phone out and called Steve's secretary. After a moment, Gita confirmed that Steve had left his office at five on the dot. Now Wanda was worried.

"We found Rogers yet?" Tony asked.

"No. We're now more confused," Pepper replied.

The doorbell rang and Wanda went to answer it in the hope that it was Steve and he had just forgotten his key. It wasn't. It was Pietro and Daisy with the former holding onto a sleeping Tess. It did not take long for Pietro to pick up the worry on his twin's face.

"Wanda, what's happened?" he asked.

"Steve isn't home and he left his office on time. He hasn't called, nor is he picking up his phone."

"Okay, let me put Tess down." By the time Pietro returned to the kitchen, Wanda had the house phone to her lips as though she was wondering who to call. "Wanda, are you sure something is wrong?"

"He has not been seen in the last two and a half hours. It takes half an hour to get from S.H.I.E.L.D to here," Wanda replied.

"I saw Steve leave the building," Daisy inputted. "He said he would see me at half seven so he was definitely on his way home."

"Not that I am one for conspiracy theories, but Banner was supposed to arrive before us," Tony pointed out.

"You think someone is kidnapping Avengers now?" Pepper asked.

"Hey, I just thought it was strange how he's late as well."

"I should call the police," Wanda said to herself.

"All they'll tell you is to wait twenty-four hours," Pietro told her.

At that point, the doorbell rang and Wanda immediately ran to it. Again, it was not Steve but Bruce.

"Wow, I did not know I caused so much worry," he joked. He looked at everyone's face and their lack of positive reaction now had him worrying. "What's going on?"

"No one knows where Steve is," Wanda answered. "He left work on time but hasn't come home. No one can get a hold of him."

"Oh. Wanda are you okay?"

"What do you think?"

"Mommy?" a small voice called. Wanda looked up and saw Lilly standing at the top of the stairs. "Is Daddy home yet?"

"Not yet sweetheart. He'll be home soon I promise."

Wanda almost hated herself for lying to Lilly but she had to say it to keep her children and herself calm. Steve probably would be home soon enough. Even if the fact he had not called was rather alarming. While Wanda went up to settle Lilly back in bed, Bruce went to the living room and asked the obvious question, "Can no one get a hold of Steve?"

"No. We've all tried," Daisy answered.

"Where were you? You were supposed to arrive half an hour ago," Tony said.

"Caught in traffic. There was a major accident. The fact the fire department was there meant they had to cut someone out the car," Bruce answered.

"Maybe Steve was caught in the same traffic," Pepper spoke.

"He still would have gotten here before me."

"Okay, girls and Jack are back to sleep," Wanda said coming down the stairs. She grabbed the phone and immediately dialed 911. "I'm calling the police. I don't care if they tell me to wait; I'm too worried."

Just as the operator answered, there was a flash of blue and red lights outside the house. Wanda looked at the window and felt her heart beat so loud in her ears she could not hear the operator on the other end of the phone. Being nearest to the door, Bruce opened it and saw a police officer step out the car.

"Is this the home of Steven Rogers?" she asked.

"Yeah," Bruce answered letting the officer pass.

"Is Mr Rogers's wife home?"

"Yes," Wanda answered with a crack in her throat.

"Mrs Rogers, I need you to take a seat." Daisy got out her seat to allow Wanda to sit but held onto her hand for comfort. "At five fifteen this afternoon, there was a call out to a car collision. A car had skipped a red light and hit the driver's side of the car. The fire department had to cut the occupant out and he has been taken to the hospital. The passenger, Mr Barnes, told us the driver was your husband." Wanda finally released the breath she was holding in. Pepper could only cover her mouth in shock while Pietro and Tony were unsure how to react. "As far as I am aware, he is still alive but he was seriously injured. We need you to come to the hospital."

Wanda nodded. As soon as she stood up, Pietro stood with her. He said, "I'll come with her. She's going to need me with her."

"You a relative?" the officer asked.

"He's my brother," Wanda replied.

"I'll come too," Bruce added. "I have medical experience."

"Okay," the officer said.

"Wanda, listen, I will look after the kids," Daisy said.

"We'll help as well," Tony added.

"Thank you," Wanda acknowledged. Just as she grabbed her scarf and coat, she saw Joey standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Joey."

"Mom, what's going on?" he asked.

Wanda got down on her knees so she was level with her seven-year-old. She tried to put on a brave face as she explained, "Your dad is in the hospital at the moment, so the nice police officer is taking me, Uncle Pietro, and Uncle Bruce to see him."

"Is he okay?"

"Of course he is. Don't you worry. Aunt Daisy, Aunt Pepper, and Uncle Tony are going to stay the night. I'll be back in the morning." She pressed a kiss to his hair and stroked his cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too Mom."

-o-

The second that they arrived at the hospital, they were told that Steve was still in surgery. His injuries were far more extensive than first thought. He had abdominal, chest and head traumas that needed to be dealt with immediately. Much to Wanda's frustration, they were told to sit in the waiting room.

It was a silent wait. Wanda had put her head on Pietro's shoulder as he put his arm around her. It was not as though Wanda had not been in a similar situation before, yet it had been so long since then. Back then, it was not Steve. It was Pietro. After being shot in Sokovia and Clint resituating him, he had been taken into surgery and was left in a medically induced coma. It took him the best part of two months before he was brought out the coma and could come home. Not that he was completely back to the way he was before The Battle of Sokovia. Having been shot in the spine, it had left his legs completely paralysed. The Stark Industries exoskeleton legs were the support that helped him walk freely.

After what felt like a moment, someone approached them. Wanda looked up assuming it was the surgeon, only it was Bucky. He looked to have stitches on the side of his head and his right arm had been put in a sling.

"Oh my… Bucky, I am so sorry. We completely forgot you were here," Wanda exclaimed as she got up to hug him.

"Hey, no problem. Steve is a higher concern than I am," he said hugging her back with his prosthetic arm.

"What happened?"

"We were just driving normally when some driver ran the red light and slammed into the car. Steve was pretty beat up."

"They had to cut him out."

"I know. How are you feeling?"

"Not great. If I am honest. I just want someone to tell me what's happening."

"Have they told you anything?"

"Multiple traumas, including the head. It could be hours before we hear anything else. Give Bruce a medal; they offered to let him watch the surgery. I'd rather hear the news from him than someone I don't know."

"I thought you were on the plane back from France," Pietro imputed.

"We got back earlier than we thought. I was just walking into HQ when Steve came out and offered me a lift home." Wanda looked down and her eyes welled up a bit. "Hey, listen. You know Steve has been through worse than this."

"I feel so guilty. I was angry that he hadn't called but then I find out he nearly died..."

"Forget about that. Just focus on helping Steve get better."

Wanda nodded. It was another two hours before Bruce emerged in scrubs. Wanda put her hands to her mouth and waited to hear the news of Steve's fate.

"He's out of surgery. They've taken him down to the ICU, but he does not need life support. It's just to keep him under observation."

"But he is going to be okay?" Wanda asked.

"With time, yes."

Wanda breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "Can I see him?"

"In a moment. They're just settling him in."

-o-

Wanda hated the term Intensive Care Unit. It brought back the horrible memories where she would hold a vigil at her comatose brother's bedside, while Pietro lay there as still as a board, white as a ghost and with machines keeping him alive. Through the window, Steve looked less intimidating to look at. He had no life support, but the white bandage wrapped around his head made her heart sink. His left eye had a giant cut and bruise forming that would no doubt form another scar.

She opened the sliding door and took a seat by the bed. His left hand was attached to his IV so trying to hold onto it proved difficult.

"Steve..." she thought trying to get into his mind. "Can you hear me?" She felt a small movement on her hand and she looked up to Steve's face where his eyelids had started to flutter. "Steve?"

Steve squinted and squirmed as his eyes adjusted to the light but in his head, there was something that was not quite registering. He could hear an Eastern European voice but did not know why. He turned his head to Wanda. She smiled at him, but Steve could not recognise her, nor the style of clothes she was wearing.

"Steve? Can you hear me? It's Wanda. You were in an accident."

"Who are you? Where am I?"

Just like that, Wanda felt her whole world shatter around her. She got out her seat, walked out the ICU into the corridor where everyone was sitting. She felt the whole room spinning and she could not hear Pietro asking if Steve was awake. Then her mind went black, unable to process this new hell, and her knees buckled. She could just feel Pietro catch her before her body shut down.


	6. Pt 2: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"You mean he does not remember anything?" asked Bucky.

"The last thing he remembers was crashing into the ice," Bruce explained. "How's Wanda?"

"Dehydrated. They've put her on a drip but I don't think the shock has helped."

"You okay? I mean Steve does not remember a thing about waking up from the ice. He won't remember finding out you are alive. By comparison, telling him he has a family is easy."

"I can't be here."

"Bucky-"

"If he sees me before we have a chance to tell him, he will freak out. From his point of view, I am dead. The last thing he saw of me was falling from a train into icy mountains. No one survives that. Then we'd have to explain the HYDRA thing and that's not a conversation he should have now."

"What are you going to do?"

"Lay low until he starts getting his memories back."

"Okay. Just keep your phone on in case we need to contact you." Bucky nodded and almost mournfully walked away. Bruce sighed and went to check on Wanda. Pietro was at her bedside while Wanda was still resting. "How is she?"

"I will let you work that out," Pietro replied. "He really does not remember?"

"Not a thing. I had to tell him that he had been awake from the ice for over twelve years and who I was. He did not quite believe me when I told him about The Other Guy." Just then Wanda stirred and her eyes fluttered open. She groaned slightly as her eyes adjusted to the light. "Hey, you okay?"

"Throat feels dry," she croaked.

"You're dehydrated so they've put you on a drip."

"What's wrong with Steve?"

Bruce pulled up and chair and put his hands together. Eventually, he explained, "Steve suffered a head trauma that caused him to forget the last twelve years. He does not remember waking up from the ice, The Avengers, HYDRA, Bucky and..."

"The kids and me?"

"Unfortunately. I don't know if this is a temporary thing. I hope it is, but given how much of his memory has been lost…"

"What if he never gets it back?"

"I don't know." Wanda's lip quivered and her eyes started to well with tears. "Wanda, don't worry. We're all going to be here for you, Steve and the kids. We're not leaving you to cope with this."

"I just want him back."

Pietro was at a loss as to how to comfort his sister. This was not a situation that could be healed with comfort. The love of Wanda's life had no idea who she was. Her heart was broken, and she was scared for Joey, Lilly, Rose, and James. This was not easy as it was, but with that on top, this was going to be the hardest challenge that everyone would have to face.

-o-

Wanda had fallen asleep again due to the dehydration with Pietro staying up to make sure she was okay. Bruce was close to falling asleep in his chair when there was a knock on the door. Pietro and Bruce looked up and saw Tony standing there.

"What happened to her?" he asked.

"Dehydration. She passed out so the nurses have put her on a drip," Bruce replied. "What are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep so I thought I would do something useful. How's Rogers?"

"He doesn't remember a thing," Pietro answered.

"About the accident?"

"About anything. He does not know who Wanda is, nor that he woke up twelve years ago," Bruce replied.

"So… We're back to Capsicle?"

"Pretty much. As you can see, Wanda did not take it well."

"Shit."

"Yep."

"So we're going to not only have to fill him in on the last eighty years, we're going to have to fill him in on everything he does not remember?"

"I think the latter is going to the be the more pressing issue. It's not just filling him in on Wanda, the kids, The Avengers, and S.H.I.E.L.D; there is also Bucky, Peggy and your father we have to talk about with him. Those…"

Tony lightly tapped his head and rubbed his face. It was one thing explaining his best friend was alive. It was another explaining that his best friend had been brutally tortured, mind-altered and used for seventy years to the point where he killed another friend of Steve's. Then there was Peggy. How anyone was going to explain that was beyond Tony's comprehension.

"I should go talk to him," he finally said. "At this point in time, I am the only thing that is close to what he knows."

"It's not the worst idea," Pietro responded.

"You know what you are going to say?" Bruce asked.

"No. I'm going to let him lead. Better than me having to spill everything." Tony left the room and walked over to the ICU. Much to his surprise, Steve was wide awake but was just staring at the ceiling. "Well, no time like the present."

The first words to come out of Steve's mouth when Tony entered the room were, "Howard?"

Tony was not fazed by this. He had gotten so used to being called Howard by accident that the association did not bother him anymore. "Close. Tony. I'm Howard's son."

"Makes sense. Is Howard still alive?"

"No. He died in 1991. Ass- Accident. Car accident. Both him and my mother."

"I'm so sorry."

"It was a long time ago Steve. You and I are good friends. I would not say it was an easy path, but we're good now."

"Probably explains why I feel I know you."

"Good. At least you haven't completely forgotten everything."

"That woman that was with me when I woke up... Wanda... Is she..."

"Your wife? Yeah."

"How long?"

"Seven and a half years. Quite a happy couple."

"Is she okay?"

"She passed out. Don't worry, her brother is with her."

"I need to see her."

"In the morning. You both need rest. So anything else you want to ask?"

"Peggy..."

"She died eight and a half years ago. It was peaceful as far as I know. You were a pallbearer at her funeral."

"Did she know I was alive?"

"Yeah. However, she had Alzheimer's disease, so every time you came to visit, she would forget that you had already seen her."

"So, I've rebuilt a life?"

"Yeah."

"And I can't remember a thing about it?"

"Well, you recognised me at least. It sounds like you just need help putting the pieces together."

"So if I ask you why I can see you in my head wearing a metal suit, you'll explain why?"

Tony sighed and took a seat, "We're going to be here a while so… Where do you want to start?"

-o-

It was morning before the neuro-consultant gave them any indication of how long it could take for Steve to get his memory back. It did not look to be temporary, though anything could trigger his memory back. They just had to wait and see.

Wanda had found herself lost in her own thoughts on how to approach this with the children. Joey was a very smart boy, and he knew his parents well enough to know when they were lying or diverting from the truth so that he was protected. James would be far too young to understand what was going on. Then there was Lilly and Rose, who were right in the middle of being smart and too young. This situation sounded a lot harder than telling them Steve had died.

She debated for a while about how long she should wait before seeing Steve. She had run so fast out the room that she probably left Steve hurt and confused. The last time she did that was nearly ten years ago after their first kiss. It was among the worst feelings she ever felt.

It was noon before she was discharged, and she walked out to the waiting room where Natasha was sitting with a magazine.

"Hey," Wanda said.

"Hey, how you feeling?" Natasha asked.

"Shit."

"Dumb question." Natasha nodded and smiled. "Have you been to see him?"

"I've spent the night on a drip. I take it you've heard."

"I've heard. Stark has told everyone. No wonder you feel terrible."

"I need to see him. I'm not so sure how to approach him, though."

"I think you just need to rip the band-aid off."

"I think you may be right."

"I brought something that may help." Natasha dug into her bag and pulled out two photo frames. "I went into his office before coming here. I was not sure which to bring so I brought both."

Wanda took the frames and looked at both. She smiled sadly when she saw that the first one was of their wedding day. The second was a comprised of four smaller frames and each had a picture of their children as newborns. It said a lot that those were the most important photos to Steve that he would keep them on his desk at work.

"Thanks, Nat."

"Listen, I have to get back to work. If you need me, you know where I am," Natasha explained as she hugged Wanda.

Wanda nodded and took a deep breath as Natasha left. Slowly, she made her way towards the ICU. Steve was watching the television. It was showing the news of the crash. He turned his face towards Wanda and there was a glimmer in his eyes that he knew Wanda.

"Hi," he said.

"I'm sorry," she replied. "I'm sorry I ran out on you."

"I understand. I guess this was a shock to you."

"More than a shock." Wanda moved towards the bed and sat on it. "Do you know who I am?"

"You're Wanda. You are my wife."

"Is that what you've been told, or is that something you know from instinct?"

"I've been told. However, when I saw you come in, my heart starting beating faster. I haven't felt that since..."

"Since Peggy."

"Yeah. So I know that deep down I love you."

Wanda sniffed and wiped her eyes. "For a moment, I was scared that you would forget that."

"You are going to have to jog my memory on how we got together."

"That's a complicated story. May take a while to finish."

"Where would you start?"

"When I threw you down the stairs, but that needs some context, which is very complicated to explain."

"So, there is a larger story to how we met?"

"Well, it starts the moment Peggy set up S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Tony explained that part."

"Did he explain that HYDRA infiltrated from the inside?"

"Yeah."

"Well, there was a branch of HYDRA that performed human experiments. Pietro – my twin brother - and I were unwitting test subjects. We were the only survivors. About a year later, you and the rest of the Avengers came to bring HYDRA down and … I realised I might need to explain something else."

"How complicated is this story?"

Wanda chuckled slightly. "I did say it might take a while. When I was ten, a Stark Industries shell hit my home, killing my parents. Up until about ten years ago, I had a hatred of Tony. I don't anymore. But yeah, you and the rest of the Avengers came to bring HYDRA down. You and I met on the stairs and I threw you down."

"Charming." Wanda smiled. "Though my head is slightly hurting."

"Okay. We can take it easy if that works."


	7. Pt 2: Chapter Three

Chapter Three

It was late afternoon when Wanda returned home. As soon as she opened the door, she was immediately greeted by an over-excited James. Wanda immediately bent down to hug her youngest. She pressed her nose to his hair and inhaled the scent of apple shampoo. She stroked his blonde hair and pulls back to look at him properly. Out of the four children, James looked the most like Steve. Joey had Steve's lips and nose, and the girls had his blonde hair and blue eyes. Yet, Joey had the Maximoff eyes that could make him look like Pietro on occasion, and the girls were almost the spitting image of Wanda. Looking at James under the current circumstances made her question why she had reacted so badly when she found out she was pregnant with him.

 _"Positive," Natasha said. Wanda, who was leaning against the sink, put her head in her hands. "I take it this was not planned."_

 _"No. It wasn't."_

 _"You okay?"_

 _"I don't know. This is number four. I still have two in diapers."_

 _"Well, that can be easily solved."_

 _"It's not just that… Steve works full time, I am trying to get this foundation set up, I already have three under five years old, and I don't have the extra hands that I had with Joey, Rose, and Lilly."_

 _"Is that all?"_

 _"What else do you expect me to say, Natasha? I'm in shock here."_

 _"You need to tell Steve."_

 _"I know, but telling him makes this true."_

 _"Joey wasn't planned, but I can't imagine that you were this…"_

 _"It was different. We were younger for a start and he was our first."_

 _"The circumstances were hardly great back then."_

 _"True, but he was the only light that I had at that point." Wanda took a deep breath and put her hand on her stomach. "Okay, I'm going to tell him now."_

 _As she walked to Steve's office, Wanda wondered how she was going to tell him. It was hardly a romantic situation, but then again the last two times she told him they were having a baby were not exactly filled with flowers and candles. Telling him bluntly seemed the best approach. Steve was on the computer when Wanda came in so he did not notice she had entered the room until she sat on the desk._

 _He looked up and smiled, "What do I owe this visit?"_

 _"I'm pregnant." Steve nodded and then once he caught onto what she said, he looked at her with surprise. "My reaction too. Sort of explains why I have been getting fat."_

 _"I take it from your face that you are not happy."_

 _"Of course I'm not. Steve, how did this happen? We were so careful."_

 _"I don't know. Maybe the condom broke... I don't think we've forgotten to use a condom. But it's happened now."_

 _"It's happened now, so we should just deal with it?"_

 _"Wanda, we know what we are doing. I can understand why you are annoyed, but we've done this."_

 _"It's easy for you to say. You don't have to worry about the baby coming early, or pre-eclampsia, or raising four kids."_

 _"Hey, Wanda, I'm scared too."_

 _"Are you really?"_

 _"Remember when you were pregnant with the girls and I told you that I was scared that what happened with Joey would happen again? It did not get any easier. Even when you're not pregnant, I get scared for you and the kids. The last thing I want for you is to end up on bed rest again."_

 _"So what are we going to do?"_

 _"What do you want to do?"_

 _"I did think about calling the clinic, but I could never do that to you. As much as I am scared right now, I don't know I am going to feel in six months. Or I might see his face and everything I am feeling right now will just wash away."_

 _"You think it's a boy?" Steve asked smiling slightly._

 _"A lot of the symptoms I have are like what I had with Joey. Mum was a doula remember."_

 _A small smile did break her face and Steve stood up to kiss her. Once he pulled away, he said, "Doll, we are going to make this work no matter what."_

Wanda pressed a kiss to James's forehead and told him to go play with his toys. In the kitchen, Joey, Lilly, and Rose were doing their homework. Daisy was helping Rose with her reading.

"Hey Daisy," she said softly.

"I'll be back in a second," Daisy told Rose and walked over to Wanda. "How is Steve?"

"Pietro told you?"

"Yeah. Is it a temporary thing?"

"The doctor said it could be a while. Either someone has to catch him up, or something has to trigger it."

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm still... distraught. My husband has no idea who I am, and now I have to explain to the kids that their father has to stay away from them for a while."

"Listen, I'll be in the other room with Tess and James if you need me."

"Thanks, Daisy."

Daisy went into the living room while Wanda stood and watched her little ones scribble away. Eventually, she plucked up the courage to walk over to the table and sit down.

"Kids, can I talk to you please?" she asked.

Joey put down his pencil and asked, "Where's Dad?"

"When we got to the hospital, Daddy was in a worst condition than we hoped. He hit his head really hard and it caused him to forget loads of things. The doctor said he should stay in the hospital for a while."

"But you said he would be home," Lilly complained.

"I know sweetheart, but that was before I knew Daddy was in an accident."

"When is he coming home?" Rose asked.

"Well, the doctor wants to keep him in for a week. Uncle Bruce then suggested we should go to a hotel for him to recover in peace."

"I want to see him," Joey said.

"They don't allow children in the ICU I'm afraid."

"I want to see him."

Wanda ran her fingers through her hair. It really needed a wash. Yet, her thoughts were more concerned with Joey's demand. She knew he wouldn't be allowed, and she had not told Steve he was a father, though he had a good eye and could probably tell by her hips that she had given birth. Perhaps she could convince the nurse to let Joey see his father for five minutes so long as he didn't mess about or start getting angry.

"Okay, Joey, I'll take you but don't get your hopes up that they'll let you in."

-o-

It took some badgering before the nurse relented and allowed Joey in for five minutes. Before they went in, Wanda knelt down and said, "Remember when I told you that your dad forgot loads of things? He forgot the last twelve years so he might struggle to remember who you are. Don't get angry or frustrated; he's already frustrated as it is."

Joey nodded and Wanda got back up, held his hand and opened the sliding door. Steve was watching some National Geographic documentary on the 2000s that must have been given to him to help him catch up. The swelling around his eye seemed to have gotten worse but it was a sign it was healing. Joey started shaking with fright and Wanda had to whisper that it was okay.

"Steve," Wanda began, "I have someone who would like to see you." Steve turned his head and stared at Joey. There was a glimmer in his eyes that thought he knew Joey but could not quite work it out. "This is Joey. He's your son."

"Hi Dad," Joey said nervously.

Wanda moved Joey closer so that Steve could look at Joey properly. He took in the dark hair and green eyes that clearly came from Wanda. He knew his own face enough to pick up his nose and lips. That confirmed that Joey was his son.

"Hi, Joey," Steve eventually replied. "How are you?"

"I miss you."

"I'll be home soon. Don't you worry."

"Mom said you lost your memory."

"I have. I'm going to get it back. Don't you worry."

"When?"

"I don't know, but for now I need you to be a good boy for your mother, okay, and I need you to be strong for your brother and sisters okay?"

Joey nodded. Wanda stroked his hair and pressed a kiss to it before saying, "Okay sweetheart, why don't you find Uncle Pietro. I need to speak with your father for a moment." As much as he did not want to leave, Joey did as he was told. Once the door was shut, Wanda sat on the bed. "You remember we have four kids?"

"I see two girls and a boy with blonde hair. Quite the opposite to Joey."

"Well, he did inherit the Maximoff eyes. One of them had to."

"I can't work out their names, which makes me a terrible father."

"It doesn't. You had a head injury. If you can't remember who I was, I didn't expect you to remember the kids. But I can help with that." Wanda pulled out the photo frame of the kids out her bag and handed it to Steve. "That was them as newborns. It's obvious who is who but I'll tell you anyway." She pointed to the picture of a boy with a full head of dark hair. "That is Joey. His full name is Joseph Anthony, after your father and Tony." She then pointed to the girls in yellow and purple hats. "In the yellow hat is Lilly Aofie, Aofie for your grandmother. You just liked the name Lilly. In the purple hat is Rose Tiena. I liked Rose and Tiena was my grandmother. They are identical twins but Rose has a birthmark on her neck so we can tell them apart." Finally, she pointed to a blonde baby boy. "And this is James Django, named after Bucky and my father. As you can see, we like our themes."

"February, March, and December. That's when they were born."

"12th February 2017, 2nd March 2019, and 23rd December 2021, to be exact. Joey is eight next month, the girls are almost six and James just turned three."

"Four kids. How do we cope?"

"Well, I always say that if you are on track for fifty percent of the day then we're doing a good job."

"Are they like us?"

"You mean enhanced? Joey clearly has your brains and he is rather strong. Rose and Lilly, we were not entirely sure but when I was carrying James, they used to tell me what he was thinking. James... We're not so sure yet."

"Maybe not the worst thing."

"I know. I might have to teach the girls how to close their mind."

"Do you think I can come home?"

"The difference between Joey and the other three is that Joey doesn't get overly frustrated and does understand why you might forget things. Rose, she tries her hardest but she does have the worst of the both of us sometimes. Lilly is much more agitated and James is too young to understand."

"So what is going to happen?"

"We're going to stay in a hotel. Let you get your bearings."

"Do you know how long?"

"No." Wanda's phone vibrated and she quickly looked at the text message before stuffing it back in her pocket. "Steve, I have to go. James is being a bit unruly."

"Okay." Wanda pressed her lips to Steve's bandaged forehead. "I will see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

-o-

Wanda had told Steve a lie. James was not being unruly. In fact, it was Bucky that had contacted her, asking to see her. He had told her he was in a bar. It was not the worst bar in the world but it did have the air of pensioners who would rather spend their life savings on alcohol than something substantial.

Bucky was sitting at the bar when Wanda walked in. He looked to be staring at some sort of spirit, possibly whisky. Wanda did fancy a drink but did not give in to temptation. Instead, she walked over and sat beside Bucky.

"What you drinking?" she asked.

"Scotch."

"Is it helping?"

It's times like this where I still wished I could get drunk," Bucky said as he stared at the scotch. Wanda smiled softly. "How is he?"

"Still sketchy. Compared to yesterday, he seems better."

"Does he say anything about me?"

"No. We filled him in about HYDRA but we have no idea how to explain what they did to you."

"Do you think he'll ever get it back?"

"At this point, I'm hoping. I brought Joey to see him. That jogged his memory a bit. He at least remembered that he had four kids but he did not remember their names."

"How are they?"

"James is blissfully ignorant. Joey seems fine, but I don't know how well he is taking it. I'm not sure the girls know the full extent of what is going on."

"They're only five."

"I know, but he's their daddy. They miss him. We're going to have to stay in a hotel for a while. It means leaving all four."

"I can help look after them if you want. Lilly is my goddaughter after all. Better than wallowing in a bar."

"Thank you. They love you. And Daisy and Pietro are on hand. Tony and Pepper are a phone call away. I just need to call Sam so he comes back from Berlin."

"You worry so much, yet you have many people that would drop saving the world for you."

"I know. I just wish that there were better circumstances."

 _End of Part Two_


	8. Part Three: Chapter One

_Part Three: Recovering from the Storm_

* * *

 _I'm searching for something that I can't reach_

Chapter One

Wanda wondered for a moment if staying in a hotel room was a good idea. It was supposed to give them space to re-connect and for Steve to get to know Wanda again. It was a twin room. They had to take slow steps and forcing Steve to share a bed with Wanda seemed counter-productive. Not that he had any protests against sharing a bed with her. She was his wife after all.

"This looks nice," Steve commented.

"Curtesy of Stark Industries," Wanda replied. "How's your head?"

"A bit sore."

"Maybe you should lie down for a bit."

"I probably should." Steve put his hand on her cheek and squinted slightly. "You used to wear eyeliner."

Wanda chuckled, "I wore a lot. After I found out I was pregnant with Joey, it became less of a priority. Also, it doesn't make me look like a mother."

"Who says that a mother has a specific look?"

"No one, but the first time I felt I truly fitted it was at a mother and baby group because all the mothers looked like me."

The memory made her laugh a little. The second she stepped into the community centre with a three-month-old Joey in his pushchair, she had been incredibly nervous. All the other mothers seemed to have bonded so approaching them gave her palpitations. However, that was small compared to the palpitations she had the night following Joey's birth. Even though she had managed to sleep, once she was awake, it was hard for her to get back to sleep, and she spent most of it checking on Joey's breathing, his temperature, and his heartbeat.

 _"Come on Doll, you need your rest," Steve insisted._

 _"I can't," Wanda said quietly as she stroked Joey's hand. "I'm worried."_

 _"He's perfectly healthy Wanda."_

 _"But he was early."_

 _"I know, but he was in a good position. He's fine. We have a nurse looking after him."_

 _"I'm his mother."_

 _"Yes, but you also gave birth this morning. They had to cut you and you lost a bit of blood. You need rest." Wanda looked at Joey and her eyes began to well up. "Hey, what's wrong?"_

 _"I'm tired, I'm happy, I'm scared, and I can't stop looking at him. There is something in my heart that doesn't want to sleep because I can't protect him then."_

 _"Oh come here," he said as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Listen, I will watch him while you sleep. Is that a deal?"_

 _"So long as you do."_

 _Steve took Joey from Wanda, who as soon as her son was in Steve's arms fell asleep._

"You really cared for us," Wanda said. "You could imagine how scared I was the first few weeks after Joey was born."

"Well, I think I was a bit freaked out as well."

"You never showed it."

"Someone had to be brave for you."

"I'm not as flappable as I was."

"I guess seeing what we have seen can harden a person. You're not hard, though."

"I think that is down to you and Joey. You told me that anger gets people nowhere, and you were right. Anger did me more harm than good. Why do you think Pietro is paralysed from the waist down? I guess Joey is also part of the reason I am not hard. I wanted him to not to make the same mistakes I did."

"What was his first word?"

"Mama. He did say Dada after a week. He's a very smart boy."

"What about the girls?"

"Bright as buttons. They've got their own language going."

"Twin talk?"

"Yes. It's rather similar to the language Pietro and I spoke as children." Wanda gave a small smile and then looked down. Steve put his finger under her chin and tilted her head up so her eyes bore into his. "Sorry. I don't really like talking about Sokovia. It's times like that when I see myself back there, and then the missile hits."

"You must have been scared."

"How did you feel when you went down?"

"Terrified. I didn't know if I would survive. Clearly, I did. I just hate that I can't remember the life I built."

Wanda gave a faint smile and took Steve's hand. Steve cupped her cheek and gently he leaned in. Wanda nearly pulled back but found herself leaning in to kiss Steve. It was almost like their first kiss; it was filled with nerves and with the slight hint of fire in their stomach. It was so soft as well.

Wanda began raking her fingers through his hair and pushed herself closer so her body was melded with Steve's. There was a part of her mind that knew this was wrong, but she did not want this to end. It had been so long since they had kissed that she was scared to let go in fear she would never get a moment like this again. Steve, on the other hand, had more restraint and pulled out the kiss.

He pressed his forehead against hers and gave a small smile. "That was..."

"That was really nice. More than nice."

"It felt familiar."

"Good, because we do that a lot. Why do you think we have four kids?" A blush crept up on Steve's cheeks. Wanda chuckled. "I never told you this. The first time we made love was my first time."

"Really?"

"I know I instigated it, but that was because I knew it was right. I knew you loved me and I loved you; so it seemed right not to waste more time. It was really sweet."

Steve leaned in again and kissed her sweetly. Later, they had put the beds together, ordered room service, and spent time alternating between kissing and talking. It was like the early blissful days. Before the Sokovia Accords, before Bucky, before the 'Civil War' and before Joey. They were so much older now. Wanda was thirty-three; Steve had the body of a thirty-nine-year-old. Yet, there was a youthful innocence in their interactions.

Steve pressed kisses to her hands and her forehead. Wanda was lying her side, mapping out the features of Steve's face. The bags forming under his eyes and the slight creases in the corners of his eyes. He still worked out so his physique had not quite aged with him. Even though she loved him for his heart and not his body, Wanda did find herself lusting over his body on occasion.

In comparison, Wanda felt like her body had mutated so much that it barely resembled what it used to look like. She was at least a dress size larger than she was ten years ago, and her breasts were two cups bigger. Her stomach and thighs were coated in stretch marks. It was the realities of being a mother, yet Steve seemed to worship her body more now than he did ten years ago.

"I'm just thinking; you have the ability to access my memories. Could you not just play with my mind until my memories come back?" Steve asked.

Wanda sighed, "Not a good idea. The last time I tried to mess with someone's head, it nearly resulted in me losing Joey."

"Who did you try to mess with?"

"It doesn't matter. Joey is fine. The person is fine now."

"But they hurt you."

"They did not mean too. He had been brainwashed…"

"Do I know him?"

"You know him very well, but it doesn't matter now. He's fine."

"Why won't you tell me who he is?"

"Because you would not believe me if I told you."

"After everything that has happened, I think I can believe most things."

"You definitely will not believe this one."

"Try me."

Wanda sat up and sighed deeply. "Do you promise that you will not freak out?"

"How bad is it?"

"Very bad."

"Okay, I promise."

"When I was younger, there was an incident where a town in Croatia was burnt down. In the town, there were some agents – S.H.I.E.L.D probably – that were trying to negotiate a peace deal. The public cause of death was listed as smoke inhalation. However, something similar had happened before, and my mother said it must be The Winter Solider. I thought he was just a ghost story, but my mother believed he exists. Years later, I read some S.H.I.E.L.D files where the cause of death was listed as either 'undetermined' or 'asphyxiation'. They died before the fire was lit.

"We've encountered The Winter Solider. It turned out that HYDRA had been using a solider from World War Two as an assassin. They wiped his memories. They indoctrinated him to the point where a sequence of worlds could set off the assassin within him."

"Who is he Wanda?"

"It was Bucky."


	9. Pt 3: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

She knew that Steve would not believe her when she said the word Bucky. He genuinely did not believe her. He was an inch closer to calling her a liar. Yet he knew she would never lie about that. Even then, he had not spoken since she had said it was Bucky.

"Steve, please say something," she said.

"What do you expect me to say?"

"I don't know. If... If it were Pietro... I would not know what to say. But he's alive. He's better. That's all that matters."

"Why did you not tell me sooner?"

"No one knew how to say it."

"Really?"

"You were in enough shock as it was. You-"

"You still should have said."

"I know." Wanda sniffed. "I really should have, but he's not dangerous anymore."

"He hurt you."

"He didn't. That wasn't him, and it was just as much my fault."

"Where is he now?"

"At our house helping with the kids." Steve immediately began to walk past Wanda and went to the door. "Steve…"

"I need to see him. I need to see him with my own eyes."

"Let me come with you."

"No. I need to do this myself."

Steve left the hotel room, and Wanda sat back on the bed, face in her hands and tried to compose her thoughts. She should call and warn Bucky. That was the first thing she did. Once she did that, she debated as to whether she should follow Steve. It took two seconds for her to grab her bag and leave the room as well.

-o-

By the time Wanda arrived home, Steve was already there. Rather than the punch-up she was expecting, Steve and Bucky were just standing on opposite sides of the room. Pietro was in the middle almost as though he was waiting for the fight to begin.

"Steve," she said.

"Wanda, he hasn't said a word," Pietro claimed.

"I know what you might be thinking," Bucky began, "It's a long story."

"I thought you were dead. I saw you fall," Steve replied.

"The fall was true. I don't remember much. I remember the blood on the snow. Pain in my left shoulder – my arm was ripped off in the process. After that… Nothing. All I know is what I have been filled in on."

"So you just began working for HYDRA?"

"Not voluntarily. They wiped my brain so many times that I forgot who I was."

"This is true Steve," Wanda added. "When you first realised he was alive, he asked 'who the hell is Bucky'. You told that in a court of law. You never lie."

"You know HYDRA. You know that they were capable of this," Bucky added. "Remember when you found me being experimented on?"

"Yeah," Steve replied.

"So you believe me?"

Part of Steve wanted to not believe him. He did not want to think about his best friend being tortured for seventy years. Yet, he knew exactly what HYDRA were capable of doing. His wife was an example.

"I believe you."

"Steve, I'm sorry I did not say anything. I guess we thought it was easier telling you that people had died than telling you someone you thought was dead was actually alive," Wanda said trying to take his hand.

"I think I need a walk," he said. "Alone."

Wanda nodded. She retracted her hand and let Steve leave the house.

-o-

Steve did not know why but there was something familiar about the Iron Man plush toy in the shop window. It had caught his eye and his memory went into overdrive trying to piece together where he had seen it.

 _"Ow, you son of a-"_

 _"Clint," Laura warned before he could curse in front of Lila and Nathanial, who were too engrossed with Wanda holding onto a seven-week-old Joey to even notice._

 _"Sorry, caught my finger."_

 _He had caught his finger between the sliding side of a crib. Since Nathanial had managed to climb over the side of his crib, Laura decided that it would be put to better use with Wanda and Steve, especially since they had no baby furniture. Some of Nathanial's hand-me-down clothes would also go to Joey._

 _"Seriously, I can't thank you both enough for all this," Wanda said._

 _"Don't mention it. It would just gather dust in a shed otherwise," Laura replied. "How are you finding everything?"_

 _"Manageable, I think. He's not a difficult baby. He's a good sleeper."_

 _"You're lucky. My three had colic through the first few months."_

 _"Doesn't mean he can't be fussy when he wants something." As if by coincidence, Joey then started fussing and started whining in a way that he meant he wanted food. "Steve, can you pass that swaddle?"_

 _Steve handed the swaddle to Wanda, who then draped it over her body, the proceeded to adjust herself so Joey could latch on easily. Wanda soothed him for a moment before he started making contented suckling noises._

 _A minute later, someone knocked on the door. Steve went to the door and found Tony standing there with a gift bag. Steve could not tell if Tony looked worse now that he had stopped drinking._

 _"Hey, come in," Steve said._

 _Tony walked in slowly and took a moment to survey the apartment. "Not bad."_

 _"It's only temporary. Turns out I still own the house so I'm going back to renovate it."_

 _"So no need for decorating this place then. Where is Road Runner going to sleep? Three floors and no elevator."_

 _"We managed to get him a place in the Stark Industries medical centre for physiotherapy," Wanda replied. "Pepper put in a good word."_

 _"How is she?"_

 _"Thankful we're okay. She got us a play-mat for Joey. He might actually like doing tummy time now. So what's in the bag?"_

 _"Oh, this? I, uh, passed a store and saw it. Thought the kid might like it."_

 _Steve took the bag and looked inside. He then looked up at Tony, who looked sheepish in response._

 _"What is it?" Clint asked. Steve pulled out an Iron Man plush toy. "I still see you admire your own reflection."_

 _"Clint," Laura warned._

 _"There is nothing to admire these days. Just thought the little guy might want something to throw around that won't break."_

 _"Thanks, Tony. Really appreciate it," Steve said._

 _"Don't mention it."_

Having remembered that, Steve wondered if something as simple as a toy could trigger his memory, then surely looking at photographs would help. It might actually help him picture Bucky in the context of the most important areas of his life.

-o-

Since Steve left the house, Wanda, Pietro and Bucky just sat around the kitchen table in silence. No one knew what to say. Wanda glanced at the clock. It was nearly half past three. Daisy would be home with the kids in a moment. True to form, as soon as the door opened Wanda could hear the five of them clambering and yelling. It did make her smile a bit.

Wanda got out her seat and went to the living room to greet them. Lilly, Rose, and James immediately launched at Wanda to hug her. Joey stood back, almost as though he knew something was wrong. Wanda gave a faint smile and told Lilly and Rose to make a start on their homework. Daisy took James's hand and led him away so Joey and Wanda could have a word in private.

"Where's Dad?" he asked.

"He's gone for a walk," Wanda replied. "Mummy did not tell him about Uncle Bucky. When they were in the army, Dad thought that Uncle Bucky had died. Since your dad forgot that Uncle Bucky was alive, he was in a bit of shock."

"Why did you not tell him?"

"It's not easy to tell a person that someone who they thought who had died is not dead."

"Is he angry?"

"I don't know. I think he might be. He just needs to clear his head. He should be home soon."

"The last time you said that he was in an accident."

"He'll be fine. I promise." Wanda looked up and saw Steve standing in the doorway. "See?"

Joey turned around, saw his father and immediately ran to hug him. Wanda gave a faint smile, especially when she heard Lilly yell, "Daddy!" as she ran through the living room. Rose soon joined and Steve hugged all three closely.

After a moment, he whispered something to the three of them and they dispersed. Wanda looked at him for what felt like an eternity before she asked, "Are you angry with me?"

"No. I wish you would have told me but I'm not angry."

" _Pot calling the kettle black_ ," Wanda thought. "There is something else. Howard did not die in an accident. He was assassinated by HYDRA."

"Bucky was involved wasn't he?" Wanda nodded. "Does Tony know?"

"He does. He did not take it too well, but he's forgiven Bucky. Just about. Would not say they are best friends but it's better than it was. So what are we going to do now."

"Just get on with our lives I guess. My head is getting there, but it's still foggy. Plus, you don't have to jump hoops around me now."

"Thankfully. It's not going to be easy is it?"

"Who knows. We'll see."


	10. Pt 3: Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"Steve, are you sure that you want to come to the parents' evening?" Wanda asked as they walked towards John F Kennedy Elementary School hand-in-hand.

"They're my kids. Of course, I want to be here on their parents' evening," Steve replied. "So, how do we do this?"

"Well, the teacher's talk for each grade is usually at the same time. One of us goes to Joey's class, and one of us goes to the girls' class."

"So who do you go to?"

"I will take on Joey's teacher this time. The girls are only in kindergarten so I can't imagine that their class will be heavily detailed."

"Ergo it's easier for my head to handle."

"It's not that. It's just that now we have two classes, we have to take it in turns. Last semester I was in the kindergarten meeting, you were in the second grade. Now we switch to make it fair. Besides, you have to deal with Ms Kamiya telling you that Lilly is a 'bright and spirited girl, but she does have a temper and does not know when to back down'. Sound familiar?"

Steve let out a dry chuckle as he stopped outside the kindergarten classroom. "This is me then."

"Just smile and pay attention."

Wanda gave a quick kiss on Steve's lips before walking away. Steve gave a faint smile before walking into the brightly coloured classroom. Ms Kamiya was sitting at her desk and smiled softly as Steve went to sit in the chair.

"How have you been Mr Rogers?" she asked.

"I've been better. How have the girls been?"

"I'm not going to lie, they have been a bit recluse since the start of the semester. The accident must have been quite hard for all the family."

"It was. Have they gotten better?"

"It's been mixed. Rose is a quiet girl and Lilly tends to lash out when provoked. There have been some incidents where Lilly has been involved in fights with other children. Rose is the quietest we've seen her, and she is really struggling with her reading. Lilly and the rest of the class are moving towards the orange band, which is where we want them to be the end of the school year. Rose is still in the red band, which is four bands behind."

"Right..."

"If it gets any worse, we may have to consider testing her for dyslexia. That way we can get her the support she needs."

"And Lilly?"

"She's progressing well. As I said, she does have a short-temper."

"And it's gotten worse."

"It used to take a lot for her to get wound up, but now..."

"Is there anything you suggest we can do?"

"I was going to suggest counselling. Just to give them the opportunity to talk about how they're feeling. I think they are wonderful, but obviously what happened has really affected them. They think the world of you."

"I do them."

"So you'll consider the counselling?"

"I will speak with my wife but I think I've already considered it."

Once the meeting was finished, Steve left the room and waited for Wanda to meet him. When she did, she looked how he felt: worried.

"I take it your meeting went as well as mine," he commented.

"Joey's been lashing out."

"So has Lilly. And Rose may be dyslexic."

"Three out of three. A plus for us."

-o-

As soon as they got home, they went up to see the kids. In the girl's room, Lilly and Rose were reading the book they were assigned for homework. Lilly's had an orange tab on the front, while Rose's had a red. Lilly was breezing through the book while Rose was concentrating really hard, almost to the point where she was struggling.

"Hey Rosie Doll," Steve said gently as he sat on her bed. "What you reading?"

"Something about a mushroom," she replied.

"She only knows that because of the picture on the front," Lilly stated. Wanda flashed a warning look at her daughter. "Sorry."

"Rose, sweetheart, Ms Kamiya says that you have really been struggling," Wanda explained. "Is it that the letters are jumbled so it makes it harder to read?"

"I don't know," Rose replied. "I guess so."

"And do struggle with pronouncing words while reading?" Steve asked.

"Yes. Am I stupid?"

"Absolutely not," Steve answered. "Some people just struggle because they have something called dyslexia. It doesn't make them stupid. You just learn differently and need extra support."

"Think to when I tried to teach you Sokovian. You were better speaking than you were writing," Wanda explained. "You're not stupid Rose."

"Ms Kamiya wants you to do a test. There are no right or wrong answers. It's just to see if you are dyslexic and how dyslexic you are." Rose nodded. Steve kissed the top of her head. "I love you."

"Love you too Daddy."

And Lilly, don't think you're off the hook," Wanda said walking over to the other bed and lifted Lilly to her feet. "Why have you been getting into fights?"

"I don't know," Lilly answered.

"You know why Lilly Aofie Rogers. Were you upset about Daddy?"

"No."

"Lilly," Steve started getting down to her level, "you are allowed to be upset. I was hurt very badly."

"I wasn't upset."

"Well, Ms Kamiya thinks that speaking to someone might help," Wanda explained also getting down to her level. "Someone who is not me or Daddy or Uncle Pietro. Both you and Rose."

"Don't want to."

"I don't think you have a choice here Lilly Doll," Steve replied. "We're just worried about you. We love you and want you to be happy."

"Then don't make me see the counsellor."

"Rose will be in with you, and Joey will also be there," Wanda insisted. "Listen, when I came to America, I needed to see a counsellor. Your Uncle Pietro was hurt badly and I was not handling it well. The lady I spoke to was really nice. She listened to how I was feeling, and I drew how I felt. I felt so much better afterwards."

"I like drawing," Rose interrupted. "I'll go."

"See. Come on Lilly. Just for me and Daddy." Lilly looked down and then nodded reluctantly. "Good. Now into bed the pair of you." The girls climbed under their duvets and Steve and Wanda kissed them both goodnight. Once the lights were off and they were both out the room, the two looked at one another. "And now for Joey. Listen, I'll handle this. It's easier to do this one-to-one with Joey or else he'll think we're ganging up on him."

Joey was sitting at his computer when Wanda came in. James was fast asleep so they had to speak quietly or else he would never get back to sleep.

"Joey, sweetheart, can we talk?" Wanda asked.

Joey closed the lid on his laptop, "I take it Mrs Barnes has told you about me lashing out."

"She did," Wanda replied. "We're just a little worried."

"I didn't mean to. It was the day after the accident."

"And you were worried about your dad. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to send you to school that day. I guess Uncle Pietro just wanted it to keep things normal, but you know that you could have talked to me or Uncle Pietro, or anyone if you were upset."

"I just thought that you had enough to worry about Mom."

"True, but I now worry about you. You're Dad is nearly back with us, so you don't have to worry anymore."

"Do I still have to go counselling?"

"I think it will help. For only one session. The thing is Joey, you're only seven. You should not have to be forced to deal with things like this."

"I'm nearly eight."

Wanda chuckled. "You are, but you're still my baby for now." Wanda pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Come on. School tomorrow."

Joey nodded and got into bed. Wanda pressed another kiss to his head before turning the lights out. In the master bedroom, Steve was looking at a photo album. When Wanda sat on the bed, she saw it was their wedding photographs or at least the few they had.

"You looked beautiful," Steve commented.

"Even though I still had the baby weight?" Wanda asked.

"Of course." He pointed to a picture of him, Wanda and an infant Joey between them. "He always was a mop head."

"I remember seeing pictures of me as a baby. I had a lot of hair."

"Bet you looked cute."

"Well, you've seen our daughters."

"Would you have preferred an actual wedding?"

"It would have been nice, but I liked what we had. Small, simple and surrounded by those I love. Though you could have waited for a moment where I looked decent rather than sweaty, out of breath and someone stitching my vagina up."

"Hey, you looked perfect." Wanda turned the pages back to when Joey was born. Wanda was sweaty and red-faced, but smiling nonetheless as Joey was resting under her gown and Steve was looking the proud new dad. "See."

"I look a mess. I looked worse after the twins were born."

"As I said, I beg to differ." Steve pressed a kiss to her forehead. "We've been together nearly ten years right?"

"Ten years August."

"August. A long while."

"Why, what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking we should renew our vows."

"Is that an actual thing?"

"Believe it or not, it is. I think it sounds like a good idea. Give you the actual wedding."

"I don't need an actual wedding, or is this because you can't remember our wedding day?"

Steve looked down, "It might be that."

Wanda smiled softly. "Okay, but only so you get to experience that feeling again."

"You don't have to if you don't want."

"Hey, I love you, and I would do anything to help you or make you happy."


	11. Pt 3: Chapter Four

Chapter Four

 _January_

"Mom? What was Opa's name?" Joey asked as Wanda stirred the goulash that was being served for dinner.

"Django, sweetheart. D-J-A-N-G-O. Why?"

"I have to do this family tree project. So how is Auntie Nat related to you?"

"She's not related to me or your dad. She is your godmother so calling her auntie is a sign of respect. It's only Uncle Pietro that you are related to."

"What about Auntie Daisy?"

"She's married to Pietro so she is family."

"Right... What about Babcia?"

"Maryam. Do you have to just show your family tree to your teacher or do you have to present it?"

"Present it. We have to say who they are, how they are related to me and what they did."

"What they did?"

"Jobs. Obviously I can't do much with Lilly, Rose, James and Tess, but wasn't Dad a solider?"

"He was. So was your grandfather."

"Oh. Did he die?"

"He did."

"Are all my grandparents dead?"

"Sadly." Wanda went to sit down and took his hand. "I'll explain better when you're older but they would have loved you. Especially your Babcia."

"You always say that. So what did Babcia do?"

"She was a doula. That means she helped women when they had their babies. God knows I could have used her."

"And Opa?"

"A carpenter. He made things out of wood."

"Grandma?"

"She was a nurse."

"Okay. Thanks Mom."

-o-

 _February_

"It is with great pleasure that The Maximoff Foundation grants $10,000 to Save the Children in order for them to continue to help families in Tranisia," Wanda read slowly as she typed her speech out for the Stark Charity Gala that weekend. Just as she finished her sentence, her phone rang. Quickly glancing at the caller ID, she saw it was Steve and put the phone on speaker. "Hey, bit busy at the moment."

"I know. I just wanted to ask you something. It's about Joey's birthday present."

"What is it?"

"Does he prefer Iron Man or The Hulk?"

"Well, as much as I wouldn't want to inflate Tony's ego further, it's Iron Man. Thankfully, Pepper has restrained him from buying all the Iron Man merchandise for the kids. What's the latest thing?"

"A virtual reality face mask – whatever that means. Apparently you can see like Iron Man."

"Somehow that doesn't sound too sensible. Granted, Tony isn't that stupid."

"We are talking about the same guy who revealed his address to terrorists."

"I think he learnt his lesson. You remember that?"

"Bruce mentioned it once. As did Natasha. And Clint. And Pepper. Even Tony mentioned it." Wanda chuckled. "So should I get it?"

"Yeah. He'll love it."

"Tony or Joey?"

"Both."


	12. Pt 3: Chapter Five

Chapter Five

 _March_

"Don't storm away Joseph. We're still not finished with our conversation," Wanda said firmly as she opened the front door.

"I didn't do it!" Joey yelled before stomping up the stairs. Wanda groaned and threw her bag down on the couch. The bedroom door slammed and Wanda fought the urge to rush up the stairs and give her son a piece of her mind.

It wasn't a minute later when Steve came in through the door with Lilly and Rose. He looked just as annoyed as Wanda did at that moment.

"Do you want me to take over?" he asked.

"Please," Wanda answered. She immediately went into the kitchen to make dinner while Steve went upstairs to Joey's room where he was sulking face down into his pillow.

"Joey. Can you sit up please?" Joey did as he was told but still had the scowl on his face. "You know better than to pick on other kids."

"For the bigillionth time, I wasn't picking on Aaron."

"Then what were you doing in the kindergarten playground?"

"He was picking on Rose and I came to tell him to stop. Then the kid started to fake cry and that is when it got the attention of Ms Kamiya."

"I'm not sure I believe you. Surely Ms Kamiya would have noticed if he was picking on Rose."

"Go and ask her. Rose can't lie. She goes all pink."

"Right, but until we get this sorted, you are staying up here and doing your homework. Understand?"

"Yes Dad."

Steve went back downstairs and walked into the kitchen and bent down to Rose's level. "Sweetheart, I need you to tell me the truth when I ask you this. Was Aaron picking on you?" Rose nodded. "Okay, did Joey push Aaron?" Rose shook her head. "Was Aaron pretending to cry?" Rose nodded. Steve looked up at Wanda, who looked to be trying to avoid his eye contact. "Wanda? You know she doesn't lie."

"I know." Wanda put the spoon down, turned the stove down and sighed. "I guess I should go apologise."

"I'll come with."

"Me too," Rose said quietly.

Wanda, Steve and Rose went upstairs to Joey's room where he was tapping his pencil on the desk as he stared at what looked to be a maths worksheet.

"Joey," Wanda said softly. Joey huffed as he turned his chair around. "So, Rose explained in her own way what happened."

"Dad ask her questions and she moved her head?"

Steve chuckled slightly when Rose nodded to confirm her brother's suspicions. "Pretty much."

"I'm really sorry I didn't believe you, and believe me when I say that I will be having words with Aaron's mother," Wanda said.

"So didn't you believe me in the first place?"

"The thing about parents like Aaron's mother is that they seem to believe that their child can do no wrong. I don't want to be that parent. I want you to know the difference between what is right and wrong."

"I know bullying is wrong."

"I know you know that, but sometimes when you call someone a name, even jokingly can hurt someone. I wasn't severely buried but I did get called some horrible names because of my ethnicity."

"And when I was your age, I was not so big and strong, so often bigger boys would beat me up. Or they tried."

"So I should fight back?" Joey asked.

"Absolutely not," Wanda said as Steve said simultaneously, "Yes."

Wanda looked at her husband as though he had lost his mind. "No, Joey, you do not fight back. You can get in more trouble for doing that."

"But I could get beaten up."

"You could always walk away. A teacher will notice."

"Well Ms Kamiya didn't notice Rose being picked on."

"True. Then just tell a teacher."

Joey shrugged. "Okay."

"Well are proud of you for standing up for your sister though," Steve added.

"Of course I'd stand up for Rose. She's my little sister, and I love her."

Rose smiled and went over to hug Joey. Wanda smiled softly, having remembered being pregnant with the twins and hoping Joey would have a close relationship with his siblings.

-o-

 _April_

Steve's three-month check-up was imminent and more than anyone, it was Wanda that was nervous about the results. The results of this scan could determine if Steve was healthy enough to return to work. By work, it meant missions, not the pencil pushing most injured agents ended up doing. Given Steve's advanced ability to heal, Natasha knew that there was a chance that the injuries sustained in the crash would have been healed within a couple months. Wanda was apprehensive about the results either way. If he wasn't any better, then he probably would not get any better. If he was, then Wanda would be worrying about Steve while he was on missions. Which is what she usually did before the accident. He was her husband and the father of her children after all.

"You're not going to be in the machine and you look more nervous than I am," Steve commented as they walked towards radiology.

"I'm always nervous when it comes to you," Wanda replied. Steve smiled. "Well, I guess I have to leave you. Good luck."

Steve pressed a kiss on Wanda's lips before walking away. Half an hour later, Steve returned as though nothing had happened.

"That was not as bad as I thought it was going to be," he commented.

"Have they told you yet?"

"Not yet. The neurologist wants a second opinion before they tell us anything."

"Did they say how long?"

"Not sure. They'll call us when they're ready. The second neurologist is in surgery."

"Brilliant. More waiting."

"I'm fine Wanda, honestly."

"But what if you had a larger injury than first thought."

"Doll, no offence, but I think losing your memory is about as large an injury a person can get without losing any functions."

Wanda chuckled slightly but then took his hand for him to sit down. It was two hours before the nurse came to get them. Wanda took a deep breath and did not let it go until the neurologist read the results out.

"You've improved Mr Rogers."


	13. Part 3: Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Steve knew his first day back at work was not going to be easy, but nothing had him expecting how badly the day would go. It wasn't an alien invasion. It was just a ferry crash. A ferry crash that involved thousands of people. They were there to try to help people that were trapped get out so the emergency services could get to work.

"Holy..." Sam exclaimed once they got to the chaos of the site.

"This is not going to be an easy day," Natasha said. "You all know what you are doing?"

"Bucky and I are freeing people if they're trapped under anything," Steve answered.

"You ready for this?"

"Yeah. I'm ready."

"Good now go."

Steve cast a glance at Wanda, who smiled at him reassuringly as he and Bucky walked towards the ferry. Wanda was tasked with trying to get any people that were trapped on the port out and to an ambulance, as was Daisy. Everyone else split up to help any free but injured passengers.

"I thought clearing up after an alien attack was hard," Daisy commented. They soon came across a man trapped under a car, surprisingly still alive but severely injured. "Sir, can you feel anything below your waist?"

"Aside from the feeling that my legs are slicing off as we speak?" the man asked.

"That's good. So my friend here is just looking for the best way to get you out, she will then lift the car up and you will be pulled out. Wanda, you ready?"

Wanda replied with, "Yes. This might hurt."

Wanda stood back and began to weave her powers and began to lift the car only high enough so Daisy and the firefighters could pull the man out. Just as Wanda put the car down gently, the paramedics and doctors went to deal with the patient.

"What now?" Wanda asked.

"I guess we should split up. You check near the water," Daisy replied.

"Okay." Wanda jogged to near the edge of the port. While there wasn't a person trapped, there seemed to be more people that were lost and confused. "Is anyone hurt?"

Just then she heard a groan coming from near the edge of the water. Wanda turned around and saw a little boy, around Joey's age, lying on the floor with cuts on his face. She rushed over to him and began inspecting for injuries, finding one on his stomach.

"I know. Do you know where your mummy is?" Wanda asked calmly. The little boy used his finger to point to the tilted ferry, where a woman was lying in a slightly unnatural position. "Okay, I see her. Can I get some help here?"

As a paramedic ran over to the boy, Wanda explained her injuries, before she ran over to the ferry, floated herself up to where the woman lay and tried to get a decent look at the woman's injuries. She whispered, "Shit." The woman looked pretty critical and Wanda was not sure how or whether she was going to be able to lift the woman safely onto the land. She took a deep breath and spoke over her communication device, "Hey, I have a woman here. She looks in very bad shape. Broken bones everywhere."

"I'm sending some paramedics over," Natasha replied. "Where are you?"

"On the ferry. Well, the outside of it. I'm thinking I could float her to land but I need someone to be there to get her into an ambulance straight away."

"Wanda, be careful."

"I will be."

Wanda took a deep breath, her hands began to glow red, the energy emitting from her hands began to wrap around the woman and gently Wanda lifted her from the side of the ferry to the ground. As soon as the woman was put down, the paramedics rushed to her. Just as the paramedics loaded the woman and her son into the ambulance, they looked back at the ferry and saw that Wanda was not there.

"She's probably going to check someone else. Let's go."

-o-

"Three, two, one," Daisy said just she popped a woman's dislocated shoulder back into its socket. The woman yelled in agony. "Sorry, but I had to do that."

"Don't apologise. Maybe I can get the good drugs now," the woman joked.

"That's the spirit."

Daisy stood up and began to look around for more injured passengers. Once she was sure that they were seen to by medical professionals, she went to meet the rest of the team at the agreed meet-up point.

"Johnson," Natasha stated. Everyone else looked to be there, except Wanda. "Okay, we just need Wanda. Wanda, come in. Where are you?"

No answer. At that moment, Steve felt something in his spine and a look of dread came over his face. Quickly, he spoke into the coms, "Wanda, please come in."

Again, no answer.

"She can't have gotten far. Everyone split up," Natasha ordered.

"I last saw her by the boat," Daisy said.

Without even thinking, Steve ran to the near the boat. Wanda was not there. "Wanda!"

After a moment, he heard a splash and saw a dark head just dip under the water. Immediately, he jumped in. Even though he could sense that the water was paralysing cold, his advanced homoeostasis helped fight off the cold as he swam towards the near motionless body.

On the surface, Daisy and Pietro were looking for signs of Wanda, only they stopped when they heard water being splashed and saw Steve walking up the ramp, holding onto a blue-looking Wanda. "I NEED SOME HELP OVER HEAR!"

-o-

At the hospital, all Steve could do was wait as Wanda was examined in the trauma room. While she still had a pulse, she was semi-conscious, her skin had a blue tint, and she was ice cold. In order to stop her from deteriorating, the doctors were doing all they can to raise her body temperature.

"How the hell did she get in the water?" Sam asked.

"We won't know until Wanda is able to tell us," Natasha replied. "What is it with your family Steve?"

"No offence Natasha, but I am not in the joking mood right now," Steve snapped.

"Sorry."

Steve sighed, "Sorry."

"Don't mention it. It's not a good time."

"I just… How? Why?"

"She could have fallen in, or was knocked in by accident," Bucky answered.

"She knows how to swim."

"And the water is freezing cold. Even Michael Phelps would have had a difficult time trying to swim through that," Bruce retorted. He was peeking through the window into the trauma room where the doctors and nurses were putting her now warmed up blood back into her body. Slowly, but surely, the blue tinge started to turn pink. "I think they're nearly there."

Steve looked through the window, somewhat relieved that his wife was looking better, even if she was not out of the woods yet. The doctor came out the room and immediately said, "We've got her blood temperature back to reasonably normal, but she's disoriented, her pulse is still rather faint and she is still hypothermic. She'll need to stay in hospital and rest until we're satisfied she's healthy enough to go home."

Steve sighed in relief and asked, "Can I see her?"

"We'll move her to a room first. She was lucky. Not many people get pulled out of that water and survive."

-o-

When Steve arrived in Wanda's hospital room an hour later, it was really warm and she was tucked up under at least three layers of blankets. Despite this, Wanda was still shivering. She gave a weak smile as Steve walked over to the bed.

"Now you know I how I felt," she commented upon seeing his face.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"Just cold."

"What happened?"

"I was saving a mother from the side of the ship. When I got her to safety, I slipped into the water. I don't know how long I was in there but it felt like an eternity."

"You did have us all worried."

"You especially?"

Steve smiled, "Of course me especially."

"Let's face it Steve. I'm not in the same shape I was ten years ago. I keep getting into scraps. Look what happened when we found Bruce."

"Well, you were saving people in both instances. You give it your best shot. Hell, I'm not exactly made of titanium."

"True." Wanda pulled the cover off. "Get in."

"Need a hug?"

"I need your heat." Steve chuckled slightly and climbed into the bed. "I suppose there is another reason. My parents died when I was ten and I never got over it. You at least had your mother until you were older. After the accident, I saw the kids' faces and I never want to see that again."

"I think we both need to take a break from this. Just focus on us and the kids."

"That sounds nice. We still have that vow renewal."

"That'll be fun to organise."

Steve smiled softly and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "You just rest now Doll."


	14. Epilogue

Epilogue

Much to Steve's relief, the vow renewal went as smoothly as it possibly could. Neither messed up their vows, the kids were well behaved and, after so long, Steve and Wanda had gotten their sex life back on track. After the hell that plagued the start of the year, the last few months were the most blissful months they had had in years.

In order to send out the year, Tony and Pepper had organised a New Year's Eve party for their closest friends only. Adult friends. The parents had organised childcare so that they could party into the early hours of the New Year.

Wanda was glad the year was ending. They needed a fresh start.

However, the power in lower Manhattan blew around ten in the evening, rendering it impossible for them to leave the Avengers Tower.

"I thought after the incident at the compound that you fixed this glitch," Steve commented.

"I only fixed it in the compound," Tony replied. "However, the deadlock should turn off once the power is back on."

"Surely it won't be long," Wanda said.

"How are the children?"

"Sound asleep."

"Good, at least they're not panicking. So what now?"

Half an hour later, they managed to create a camp fire and were enjoying a small drinking session and chatter. There wasn't really much else that they could do. Wanda was casually sipping her wine as she leant into Steve's body. While there was some evidence from the crash, most notably the scar in Steve's hairline, the last year was practically non-existent, even if Wanda felt like she had aged twenty years.

"You genuinely think that this could be a better year?" Steve asked.

"Well, we've had worse years," Wanda replied. "Remember New Year in Wakanda?"

"It wasn't so bad."

"I couldn't drink for one thing. Not that we did not get anything perfect out of it."

"Well, every New Year since has been great."

"True. It's just sometimes the bits in between. Though we haven't had a bad year since 2016. Though 2017 was a mixed bag. Though it got better from there."

"It did?"

"Well, we had our son, we were married, we had our home, Bucky was well again, and the Avengers were all back together. That's better in my opinion."

"It was."

"What time is it?"

"One minute to go."

Just then the lights came back on, and they all rushed to watch the Times Square Ball drop.

"Five, four, three, two, one! Happy New Year!"

Steve gave a quick kiss on Wanda's lips, and then they both joined in the singing as the singer echoed through all of lower Manhattan, "Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should old acquaintance be forgot, and old lang syne?"

The End


End file.
